Meshtastic Info
Meshtastic at DEF CON 33
NOTE
This document was revised on 2025-08-05 at 16:05 US/Pacific, with corrected PSKs.
Message
Join the DEF CON mesh network and connect with thousands of hackers using LoRa radios!
Quick Start (Recommended)
Option 1: DEF CON Firmware (Easiest)
- Visit https://defcon.meshtastic.org
- Select “DEF CON 33” firmware variant
- IMPORTANT: Check “Full Erase and Install” before flashing
- Flash your device
- You’re ready to go!
Option 2: Manual Configuration
If you prefer to keep your current firmware:
1. Core Radio Settings
- Open Meshtastic app
- Go to Radio Configuration → LoRa
- Set Region: United States
- Set Preset: Short Turbo
- Set Channel Number: 31
- Set Hop Limit: 2 or 3 (keep it low!)
- Enable Event Mode if available
2. Add DEF CON Channels
You can copy the text of these from here: https://info.defcon.org/document/?id=535
Add these three channels in order:
Channel 0 – DEFCONnect (Primary)
– Name: DEFCONnect
– PSK: OEu8wB3AItGBvza4YSHh+5a3LlW/dCJ+nWr7SNZMsaE=
Channel 1 – HackerComms
– Name: HackerComms
– PSK: 6IzsaoVhx1ETWeWuu0dUWMLqItvYJLbRzwgTAKCfvtY=
Channel 2 – NodeChat
– Name: NodeChat
– PSK: TiIdi8MJG+IRnIkS8iUZXRU+MHuGtuzEasOWXp4QndU=
3. Optional: Enable MQTT (Uplink Only)
To share your messages globally:
– Enable MQTT
– Server: mqtt.defcon.org
– Username: public
– Password: 31337
– Topic: event/defcon33
– Enable encryption and TLS
Note: MQTT is uplink-only to prevent flooding. Your messages go out but you won’t receive MQTT messages locally.
Need Help?
- Darknet-NG – Located in the Contest Area
- Lonely Hackers Club – Located on Level 2
Troubleshooting
- Not seeing anyone? Make sure you did a full erase when flashing
- Still on LongFast? You need to change the modem preset
- Can’t connect? Verify you’re on channel 31 with Short Turbo
Join us in making the largest Meshtastic network ever!
Copying text
We are aware that you are unable to copy text from this document using Hacker Tracker iOS. As a workaround, you can go to the following website, and copy from there: https://info.defcon.org/document/?id=535